Master of the Senate: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, (Vintage)
by Robert A. Caro
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Read in January, 2003
Think the legislative process sounds boring? Think again. Using the crafting and passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957 to frame the story of Johnson's Senate years -- during which he practically invented modern Senate procedure -- Caro makes lawmaking look downright dramatic. Which it is, especially when the stakes are so high.
Johnson doesn't come across as a hero in the practical sense -- he's a boor, unfaithful to his wife, an opportunist, and, at times, doesn't appear to have any real c...more
Johnson doesn't come across as a hero in the practical sense -- he's a boor, unfaithful to his wife, an opportunist, and, at times, doesn't appear to have any real c...more
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recommended to Jessica by:
everyone i've ever known who's read it
I've started about eight books in the past week, but I can't get into any of them. I've just been flailing around in the Proust, and nothing else I've tried to read lately has done anything for me.... so tonight I decided to stop this charade and go for what I want.
I've suspected for awhile that I was born to read this book, yet I keep telling myself it's not time yet. There's something a little scary about starting a book like this one. What if it's not as mindblowing as I think it's going ...more
I've suspected for awhile that I was born to read this book, yet I keep telling myself it's not time yet. There's something a little scary about starting a book like this one. What if it's not as mindblowing as I think it's going ...more
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Read in October, 2007
Robert Caro has got to be the best American biographer of the past 50 years. It's sad that he's only turned out 4 books in the last 35 years, but each one is so exceptionally researched and well-written.
Master of the Senate is another chapter in Caro's multi-volume study of Lyndon Johnson, focusing on his time in the Senate, specifically his efforts to pass the first Civil Rights bill since Reconstruction. His study of the political dynamics of the Senate in the 1950s, including the entr...more
Master of the Senate is another chapter in Caro's multi-volume study of Lyndon Johnson, focusing on his time in the Senate, specifically his efforts to pass the first Civil Rights bill since Reconstruction. His study of the political dynamics of the Senate in the 1950s, including the entr...more
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Read in January, 2008
This is one of the best biographies I have read, but it is long! 1040 pages of text (excluding notes, bibliography, etc.).
This is a really fascinating look at LBJ (focusing on his years in the Senate). He was obviously a complicated guy, and the picture of him and of that period in the Senate are compelling.
My only complaint is that this could have been significantly shorter. Caro spends a lot of time on peripheral matters--they need to be covered, but the could be dealt with in less ...more
This is a really fascinating look at LBJ (focusing on his years in the Senate). He was obviously a complicated guy, and the picture of him and of that period in the Senate are compelling.
My only complaint is that this could have been significantly shorter. Caro spends a lot of time on peripheral matters--they need to be covered, but the could be dealt with in less ...more
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Read in November, 2007
This is Caro's third book on Lyndon Johnson. Though long and dense (it's been on my bedside table for a while), it is fascinating to read about LBJ's political skills and, well, manipulation of other senators to achieve his goals--some admirable, others not so.
Update: I've finally finished this tome! Took me a really long time to get through it (can you say years?), but it was worth it. This isn't a book for the non-political junkie, but very well-researched and extremely interesting. Th...more
Update: I've finally finished this tome! Took me a really long time to get through it (can you say years?), but it was worth it. This isn't a book for the non-political junkie, but very well-researched and extremely interesting. Th...more
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recommends it for:
megalomaniacs
An excellent story of power in the state and in the person, profiles Johnson's period in the Senate, and by doing gives an excellent history of the age of the civil rights struggle in Washington. Extensive and fascinating contextual buildup for the big J. My only complaint would be that Caro's language and description can be annoying at times, as he arranges his words like a general, with a subtle pompousness. Every sidestory can become a small battle, every side figure he profiles is calculated...more
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Quite simply, one of the finest books I have ever read. Some have acturatley described Caro's biographies as more akin to a thriller )or western) than a political biography. This volume is lengthy but reads terribly quickly and chronilces Johnson's rise to power and political machinations in the U.S. Senate. Especially memorable events chronicled included Johnson's efforts to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1957, the first such bill since Reconstruction. Another beloved aspect of the book are t...more
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Read in July, 2006
recommends it for:
political junkies and history fans
Caro seems strangely conflicted in all his LBJ volumes--he really seems to admire a lot of what LBJ was able to do, but he also seems to deplore LBJ as a person. One will find both sorts of stories in this book, from his masterful handling of southern senators en route to passing the Civil Rights Act of 1957, to his boorish behavior around women and his staff in general. Lots of largely than life characters here besides LBJ, including Hubert Humphrey, John Eastland, Sam Rayburn, and so on. Caro ...more
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Read in September, 2002
Despite what you think of LBJ, and I don't think much of him, Robert Caro's series on Johnson far surpasses any other books that have come before or after on Lyndon Johnson. In all three of Caro's volumes, he includes mini biographies of important people in Lyndon's life. In this volume, Senator Richard Russell, jr. of Georgia is given his due, and his importance as friend and adviser to LBJ. Also, the first 100 pages include a history of the US senate that could stand alone as a book unto itsel...more
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Read in January, 2008
Great book; fascinating accounts of the inner workings of the US Senate, even the formation of American Government. Inspired me to pick up and finish a John Adams bio and start reading "Alexander Hamilton." A great read for right now, in an election year. Also made me read The Declaration of Independence for the first time I remember since, I don't know, being 12. So much in here I didn't really know about how/why the Senate was formed, its function over the years, and how that's chang...more
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recommends it for:
anyone
Even with about 500 pages to go (this weighs in at over 1,100) I'm already sorry this has to end. Caro has a style that's unlike any other nonfiction writer I've experienced, he has the dramatic turn of phrase of a novelist and the eye for detail of a documentary filmmaker. As good as the previous two books in this series are, this one has much great nuance in its portrayal of Johnson. I can't wait for the planned fourth volume.
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Read in April, 2007
Many reviews have been written on this book, detailing its narrative of LBJ's political wizardry. For me, however, the book was a treat because each description of one or another of LBJ's campaigns or political fights or wild mood swings contains a history lesson that would be hard to find in any other single text. Highly recommended.
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Read in July, 2007
If you have the heart for it, this is a great book. It's very long (over 1,100 small-type pages), but it's very well written and an insightful treatise on how a person can lust after, obtain, and then ultimately use power. Also a great description and analysis of the inner workings of the U.S. Senate.
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Read in November, 2006
Excellent book. Long, although Caro is a captivating author. He enjoys writing about LBJ for some reason, yet apparently hates him as a person. I generally do not read biographies, but Caro's ability to write and his attention to the smallest (yet amusing and entertaining) details kept me interested.
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Read in January, 2003
I can't think of a way to praise this book enough. If there is a better work of history/biography in existence, I haven't read it. I am no fan of Lyndon Johnson but this book is so gripping, so far-reaching, and so thorough that I literally would shake my head in awe at it as I read.
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Read in November, 2005
recommends it for:
history buffs/lbj lovers
a dense review of lbj's rise to power starting from the time he was a texas representative to the time he became vice-president. it does a great job in showcasing this man's extreme pragmatism, and even though he might be a bit of a btard, at least you see what a smart btard he was.
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Maybe the single greatest book on how politics in modern America works. This is the third of a projected four-volume bio on LBJ, and the first two were superior books, but this thing is a masterpiece. To my thinking, it's the second greatest history book written about America.
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Read in August, 2003
recommends it for:
everyone
Absolutely the best political book out there. Caro is an amazing author and historian. LBJ was possibly the most effective Senator in US history and this book shows why. Anyone who wants a better understanding of the legislative process and the US Senate must read this book!
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Robert Caro is an absolute master of biography. His massive research, combined with comprehensive and penetrating analysis, produce the most intimate and spellbinding insights to personalities and the circumstances they operate in. I will say this about all of his books.
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recommends it for:
Nerds, especially History Nerds
It's unbelievable that a book this long and containing large chunks of Congressional debate could be a page-turner, but it is. I finished the whole, heavy thing and felt as sad to be done and as desperate for another, please, as I did at the end of the Potter series.
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